Thong type handles for manually portable receptacles



Nov. 8, 1966 w. w. MCLEAN THONG TYPE HANDLES FOR MANUALLY PORTABLE RECEP'I'ACLES Filed Oct. 26, 1964 United States Patent 0 3,283,993 THQNG TYPE HANDLES FOR MANUALLY PORTABLE RECEPTACLES Wayne William McLean, 4084) N. Mission Road, Los Angeles, Calif. Filed Oct. 26, 1964, Ser. No. 409,347 3 Claims. (Cl. 22954) The present invention relates to handles of the type generally curviformly disposed above the upper extremity of manually portable receptacles and more specifically to narrow pliant, thong-type handles as are attached to the opposed, upper extremities of shopping bags and like receptacles and to such handles which assume a configuration according to the weight of the depending load, the size of the hand and the resistance of the fingers of the hand engaging the handle and load.

It has been experienced by many that the greater the load depending from narrow, thong-type handles, the greater the discomfort on the fingers of the hand from which the load depends and that the greatest pressure and discomfort is felt by the two outer fingers in contact with such handles. More accurately, the greater burden and discomfort is impressed upon the outer extremities of the outer fingers when a load is being carried and little of the burden and pressure is taken up by the middle fingers of the hand nor by the middle portion of the handle.

It is, therefore, an object of this invention, to concamerate a narrow, thong-type handle so as to contrapose the unfixed extents of the thong and thereby mitigate or obviate the local discomfort and pressure on the fingers of the hand engaging such a handle and to distribute the pressure evenly and make a narrow curvate handle more comfortable to the fingers of the hand. 4

It is an object, by simple structural conversion of a narrow thong, to permit the central part of the handle and the middle fingers(s) of the hand to share the burden of the load, in fact the greater part, and this in relative comfort.

With regard to narrow, sling-type carriers, it is intended, further, to permit dependence of a previously balanced load, in greater part, from the central portion of the handle, both for comfort to the hand and to prevent imbalance of the load and possible tipping of the load being carried. Such a provision is intended in a handle for use on a sling-type carrier for students books.

To the attainment of the foregoing objects and ends, the invention resides in those novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of par-ts all of which are herein fully shown and described and finally particularly pointed out in the appended claims, reference first being had to the accompanying figures of the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a view in elevation and perspective of an embodiment of a handle unit of this invention.

FIG. 2 shows a view in elevation and perspective of a second embodiment of a handle unit of this invention.

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the upper, open end of a shopping bag and showing the handle of this invention disposed on each of two oppose-d sides of the receptacle.

FIG. 4 shows the opposed, upper ends of a narrow, sling-type carrier with handles of this invention affixed thereto and showing fingers of the hand inserted through the concamerated portions of the handles.

With further and more particular reference to the drawings wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout,

FIG. 1 shows a flat, elongated, semirigid yoke element 1 commonly used for attachment to' each of two opposed sides of shopping bags made of kraft paper. The yoke element 1 is made of pressed cardboard and is a rein- 3,2833% Patented Nov. 8, 1966 forcing and yoke element to which the handle is afiixed prior to attachment of the unit to a bag. In accordance with this invention, the terminal portions 2 of the handle 3 are aflixed to the yoke element 1 adjacent the ends thereof by stapling at i. The unaffixe-d extent of the handle 3 is crossed over upon itself at 5 to form a medial loop in the handle. The loop is then inverted to form a medial arch 6 and disposed so as to symmetrically straddle the central portion of the yoke element 1 over a medial portion of the yoke between the terminal, fixed portions 2. Two opposed, basal portions 7 and 7 of the medial arch 6 are then afiixed to the yoke by stapling at 8 and 8 on opposite sides of the center 10 of the yoke.

An alternative method of constructing the handle of FIG. 1 is to fixably restrict the medial portion 9 of an elongated handle element 3 by spaced-apart fixation at 8 and 8' on opposite sides of the center 16 of the yoke element 1, reciprocally crossing the unfixed extents of the handle 3 at 5 and concamerating said extents above the yoke so as to form contraposed arch-portions 11 and 12 and afiixing the terminal portions 2 of the handle to the yoke 1 at opposite ends 2 thereof.

The embodiment of FIG. 2, although the same as that of FIG. 1 in so far as the unfixed extents of the handle are concerned, is formed by an interruption in the continuity of the thong forming the handle. Extents of the handle 3 and 3' emanating from the opposed, fixed portions 2 and 2' are concamerated by a reciprocal, collateral crossing at 5 to form the medial arch 6 and the opposed, lower leg portions 13 and 13 are affixed to the yoke element 1 at 8 and 8.

FIG. 3 shows the upper extremity of a shopping bag 14 with the handle units affixed to two opposite sides. The units are commonly afiixed between the overlapped upper edge 15 of the bag by adhesive bonding. It will be readily observed from FIG. 3 that six arches are formed from two arches.

FIG. 4 shows the opposed, upper extremities 16 and 16 of a narrow, sling-type carrier with the handles of this invention attached thereto and shows how the fingers of the hand may be inserted through the arches of the handles. One finger is shown inserted through arches 11, one through arches 12 and one finger through the medial arches 6 although the two middle fingers rnay conveniently be inserted through the medial arches 6.

It will be seen from FIGS. 3 and 4 that there are four widths of the handle with which the finger or fingers inserted through the arches 6 will make contact and that whereas formerly the finger-handle contact area was only superficial and minor at the central portion of the handle, it is now considerably increased by virtue of peripheral intimacy between finger and handle as provided by portions 17 and 17' at the upper areas of the arches 6.

Although FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 show the handle affixed to a conventional yoke element, the handles, alternatively, can

be affixed to a bag without the use of a yoke element.

Adhesive. bonding with paper overlays can be employed to aifix the handles directly to a shopping bag.

The handles of this invention, being concamerated to form, in fact and in effect, three arches, one being common to the other two, will be seen to be contraposed and that the medial arch 6 will adjust, at the upper portions thereof, at and near the juncture 5, to varied, dependent loads with a consequent even distribution of pressure on the fingers engaging the handle.

What is claimed is:

1. In a handle of the type such as used on shopping bags and like receptacles wherein the two ends of a narrow, elongate thong are fixed to an upper extremity of the receptacle in spaced-apart relationship one to the other, the unfixed remainder of the thong forming an arch disposed above the receptacle, means to structurally convert the thong so as to alleviate the unequal, local pressures and discomfort on the fingers of the hand engaging the thong in carrying a load therefrom, consisting of interrupting the unfixed continuity of the arching thong by bilaterally crossing the thong upon itself midway between said spaced-apart, fixed ends of the thong so as to form two, substantially collinear arches, a first arch asymmetrically straddling the center of the length of said upper extremity of the receptacle on one direction of said length, a second, complementary, reciprocating arch straddling the center of the upper extremity in the opposite direction, With said first and second arches partially overlapping one another so as to form a third arch common to said first and second arches and symmetrically straddling a partial extent of said upper extremity midway between said two ends and fixing two, opposed, basal portions of the medial, common arch to the receptacle.

2. In a handle of the type used on shopping bags and like receptacles wherein the two ends of a narrow, elongate thong are fixed to an upper extremity of the receptacle in spaced-apart relationship, one to the other, the unfixed remainder of the thong forming a unitary arch symmetrically disposed above the receptacle on opposite sides of the center of the upper extremity thereof, means to provide a more comfortable handle, to permit greater dependence of a load being carried from the upper, central portion of the thong and to contrapose the handle, consisting of bilaterally crossing the thong upon itself midway between said spaced-apart ends so as to form a medial loop in the thong, inverting the loop and disposing the loop so as to reciprocally arch over and symmetrically straddle the center of said upper extremity over a medial extent thereof, with the upper part of the loop having two thicknesses of the thong over the upper, junctural portion of the loop and fixing two, opposed, spaced-apart, basal portions of the loop to the receptacle so as to span said medial extent between said two ends.

' 3. In a handle unit for shopping bags comprising a fiat, elongated, semirigid, yoke element to which a narrow, elongate thong is attached prior to fixation of one of the units to each of two, opposed, upper extremities of the bag and wherein the two ends of the thong are fixed to the yoke element adjacent the opposite ends thereof, with the remainder of the thong forming an arch over the unit to comprise the handle, the yoke having opposite, distal ends, a left end and a right end, a center and a medial, proximal portion between said two ends, a left side of said proximal portion and a right side, the improvement, comprising means to obviate the local, unequal pressures on the fingers of the hand engaging the thong in carrying a load therefrom and to provide a more comfortable handle, consisting of fixing one end of a thong to the yoke adjacent the left end thereof, arching the thong over so as to asymmetrically straddle the center of the yoke and fixing the opposite end of the thong to the right side of said proximal portion, fixing the end of a second thong to the yoke adjacent said right end thereof, arching it over so as to asymmetrically straddle the center of the yoke and fixing the opposite end of said second thong to the left side of said proximal portion of the yoke element, the two arching thongs partially overlapping one another medially and above the center of the yoke element to form a third arch common to the two, contraposed, first and second thongs and arches and with said medial, overlapping and common arch being of an extent sufficient to receive the middle finger of the hand, the remaining fingers of the hand engaging the adjacent arches.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,199,766 8/1965 Vineberg 229-54 FOREIGN PATENTS 23,963 of 1913 Great Britain. 274,247 7/1927 Great Britain.

JQSEPH R. LECLAIR, Primary Examiner' DAVID M. BOCKENEK, Examiner. 

1. IN A HANDLE OF THE TYPE SUCH AS USED ON SHOPPING BAGS AND LIKE RECEPTACLES WHEREIN THE TWO ENDS OF A NARROW, ELONGATE THONG ARE FIXED TO AN UPPER EXTREMITY OF THE RECEPTACLE IN SPACED-APART RELATIONSHIP ONE TO THE OTHER THE UNFIXED REMAINDER OF THE THONG FORMING AN ARCH DISPOSED ABOVE THE RECEPTACLE, MEANS TO STRUCTURALLY CONVERT THE THONG SO AS ATO ALLEVIATE THE UNEQUAL, LOCAL PRESSURES AND DISCOMFORT ON THE FINGERS OF THE HAND ENGAGING THE THONG IN CARRYING A LOAD THEREFROM, CONSISTING OF INTERRUPTING THE UNFIXED CONTINUITY OF THE ARCHING THONG BY BILATERALLY CROSSING THE THONG UPON ITSELF MIDWAY BETWEEN SAID SPACED-APART, FIXED ENDS OF THE THONG SO AS TO FORM TWO, SUBSTANTIALLY COLLINEAR ARCHES, A FIRST ARCH ASYMMETRICALLY STRADDLING THE CENTER OF THE LENGTH OF SAID UPPER EXTREMITY OF THE RECEPTACLE ON ONE DIRECTION OF SAID LENGHT A SECOND, COMPLEMENTARY, RECIPROCATING ARCH STRADDLING THE CENTER OF THE UPPER EXTREMINTY IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECITON WITH SAID FIRST AND SECOND ARCHES PARTIALLY OVERLAPPING ONE ANOTHER SO AS TO FORM A THIRD ARCH COMMON TO SAID FIRST AND SECOND ARCHES AND SYMMETRICALLY STRADDLING A PARTIAL EXTENT OF SAID UPPER EXTREMITY MIDWAY BETWEEN SAID TWO ENDS AND FIXING TWO, OPPOSED, BASAL PORTIONS OF THE MEDIAL COMMON ARCH TO THE RECEPTACLE. 